Zelenskyy overhauls composition Supreme Commander-in-Chief Staff by adding new SOF chief

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy changed the composition of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief Staff and introduced a new commander of the Special Operations Forces, according to the corresponding decree published on the website of the head of state.

Serhiy Lupanchuk, the new commander of the Special Operations Forces, was introduced to the Staff.

At the same time, former commander Viktor Khorenko was removed from the body.

The decree enters into force upon its publication.

After his dismissal, Khorenko said that he was unaware of the reasons for his dismissal and learned about it from reports in the media.

The President's Office said that everything happened within the framework of the law .

Khorenko held the post of commander from July 2022. His predecessor was Hryhoriy Halahan, who moved to the position of first deputy head of the Special Operations Center "A" of the SBU.

On November 3, President Zelenskyy appointed Serhiy Lupanchuk as the new commander of the Special Operations Forces, and by another decree, Zelenskyy dismissed the previous commander of the SOF. The reasons for such personnel rotation were not reported.

In an evening video message, Zelenskyy said that Khorenko will continue to perform special tasks as part of the Main Intelligence Directorate (HUR) of the Ministry of Defense.